restoring luster to fiberglass top

Maintenance of the body of the camper
Post Reply
User avatar
baggydew
Weekend Camper
Posts: 86
Joined: Mon May 26, 2008 12:00 am
B190 Year: 1994
WBCCI: 0
Location: Columbus Mississippi

restoring luster to fiberglass top

Post by baggydew »

For a simple way to restore the color and luster of your oxidized fiberglass top, try this.....

Wipe petroleum jelly on the surface using the scrubby side if a household sponge. You will see the oxidation (white) disappear as you sponge on the jelly. Rub off and buff the excess with a towel. You will end up with a smooth surface, free of oxidized powder residue. The result has no swirls and has a uniform glossy finish. To bring out and preserve the shine, wax the surface when done. I used Nu-Finish, the stuff in the orange bottle. Went on easy, lasts for a year. I'm amazed with the result.
This may not as good (shiny) as a professional wet sanding of the gel coat followed by waxing but I'm thrilled with the ease and smooth result I did the top in a couple of hours. No elbow grease. All you'll need is a container of petroleum jelly from Wal-mart for under 2 bucks and some wax to keep it looking good. Easy fix.
User avatar
lido14co
Seasoned Traveler
Posts: 259
Joined: Wed Apr 25, 2012 1:12 pm
B190 Year: 1992
WBCCI: 0
Location: Los Osos, CA

Re: restoring luster to fiberglass top

Post by lido14co »

baggydew wrote:For a simple way to restore the color and luster of your oxidized fiberglass top, try this.....

Wipe petroleum jelly on the surface using the scrubby side if a household sponge. You will see the oxidation (white) disappear as you sponge on the jelly. Rub off and buff the excess with a towel. You will end up with a smooth surface, free of oxidized powder residue. The result has no swirls and has a uniform glossy finish. To bring out and preserve the shine, wax the surface when done. I used Nu-Finish, the stuff in the orange bottle. Went on easy, lasts for a year. I'm amazed with the result.
This may not as good (shiny) as a professional wet sanding of the gel coat followed by waxing but I'm thrilled with the ease and smooth result I did the top in a couple of hours. No elbow grease. All you'll need is a container of petroleum jelly from Wal-mart for under 2 bucks and some wax to keep it looking good. Easy fix.
going to try this. Have been using the nu-finish which protects well but I’m missing the shine.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
User avatar
baggydew
Weekend Camper
Posts: 86
Joined: Mon May 26, 2008 12:00 am
B190 Year: 1994
WBCCI: 0
Location: Columbus Mississippi

Re: restoring luster to fiberglass top

Post by baggydew »

I think you'll be pleased with the result. I've tried everything on the market to get a uniform smooth finish, from Color Back to Mop and Glo and nothing I've tried is as easy as this. It should last with the wax. Smooth as a baby's butt. At least it's protected and looks good. As a side benefit, the jelly gets down in those spider cracks and repels water. Good luck. Let us know what you think.
User avatar
usachris
Seasoned Traveler
Posts: 203
Joined: Sun Mar 12, 2017 5:31 pm
B190 Year: 1999
Location: Costa Mesa, California @ St. John, Indiana

Re: restoring luster to fiberglass top

Post by usachris »

Hey, how about posting a few “before and after” pics? Thanks!
Christopher Salazar
1999 B190 #301352
User avatar
baggydew
Weekend Camper
Posts: 86
Joined: Mon May 26, 2008 12:00 am
B190 Year: 1994
WBCCI: 0
Location: Columbus Mississippi

Re: restoring luster to fiberglass top

Post by baggydew »

Too late.. never took any pictures before I started.
User avatar
mountaindent
Seasoned Traveler
Posts: 163
Joined: Tue Sep 26, 2017 9:06 pm
B190 Year: 1992
WBCCI: 19000
Location: Black Mountain,NC

Re: restoring luster to fiberglass top

Post by mountaindent »

This is what I have been looking for to restore the top. There goes my free day tomorrow!
8Track
Weekend Camper
Posts: 17
Joined: Fri Jan 05, 2018 12:11 pm
B190 Year: 1999
WBCCI: 0
Location: Nashville, Tn

Re: restoring luster to fiberglass top

Post by 8Track »

After spending 3 hours washing and waxing my rig top to bottom, I realized that I didn't hate myself enough just yet and decided to try this petroleum jelly trick. Wow! what a difference! Before, my top had a strong contrast to the body and didn't realize that it was just heavily oxidized..now it's pulled back most of what I feel is the original color and looks great! I can't stop looking at it. Thanks for the tip Baggydew!

Here's a trick I learned to restore the color to the faded & oxidized running boards- mix two parts paint thinner & one part boiled linseed oil- Apply it with a cloth and let it sit for about 10 minutes then just wipe off. Keep applying it til you get the color back and it will last a long time with no oil buildup (I was able to get my color back with just one pass). Prior to applying this, my running boards looked like a faded blue, but realized they are more of a deep grey color after using this method. They really look great now!
User avatar
baggydew
Weekend Camper
Posts: 86
Joined: Mon May 26, 2008 12:00 am
B190 Year: 1994
WBCCI: 0
Location: Columbus Mississippi

Re: restoring luster to fiberglass top

Post by baggydew »

I'm going to try your trick on the running boards. Appreciate your feedback.
User avatar
GJCamper
Weekend Camper
Posts: 52
Joined: Wed Aug 02, 2017 7:59 pm
B190 Year: 1996
WBCCI: 5019
Location: Grand Junction, Colorado

Re: restoring luster to fiberglass top

Post by GJCamper »

Did you use the regular or the no-scratch type of scrubby sponge when you applied the petroleum jelly?
WBCCI 5019
1996 Airstream B190 purchased August 2017
User avatar
baggydew
Weekend Camper
Posts: 86
Joined: Mon May 26, 2008 12:00 am
B190 Year: 1994
WBCCI: 0
Location: Columbus Mississippi

Re: restoring luster to fiberglass top

Post by baggydew »

I just used something I bought at the grocery store Scotch Brite or something. Don't think it matters if it's scratch proof. The idea is to get the petroleum jelly on the surface. The scrubby side just helped to rub away the oxidation a bit. You don't even have to rub hard....just work the jelly into the fiberglass. As soon as the jelly is put on the fiberglass, you'll see a change back to the original color. Then buff the gooey stuff off and wax. The jelly goes down into the pores of the fiberglass and restores the finish. At first, I didn't even wax the surface and water beaded up but it was such a smooth finish after buffing the jelly off, I went ahead and waxed it. You won't believe how easily this works.
Post Reply